An Unusual Family
by AnonymousWanderer
Summary: The Avengers have drifted apart. It wasn't intentional or anything and they still visit each other but they just don't feel like a team. Can a mission for Fury change that? Even if it's a babysitting assignment, kind of? Who is this girl anyway? No pairings. Being rewritten. Previously Family Matters.
1. A new mission

A NEW MISSION-BABYSITTING?!

Disclaimer: Not mine. Now, let's comence with the story.

The Avengers had done little together with all there members since the invasion on Earth. Loki had been locked up tight for the time being and the team had scattered. Bruce and Tony enjoyed the lab at Tony's tower, Steve had also taken to popping in frequently, Thor had gone back to Asgard and visited every so often, and Natasha and Clint were busy doing missions for S.H.E.I.L.D. showing up when they had breaks.

A few months after the invasion everyone on the team was called to the helicarrier. Bruce Banner arrived last with Tony Stark in tow.

"Alright Fury, we're all here so tell us this oh so important mission of yours." Tony stated bluntly.

"I've called you here to give you a very important assignment. Bring her in!" Fury yelled the last part out to three men waiting outside. They slowly walked in, surrounding a person so she hidden from the Avengers. "You are to watch her and make sure she does not do anything to injure anyone. Herself or otherwise. " Fury tells the Avengers as the guards leave them with a teenage girl in handcuffs.

"Wait so you want us to play babysitter?" Clint cries as Tony says, "Fury do we look like a babysitting service to you?" Steve respectfully asked if Fury was sure that this was what he wanted them to do while Natasha just stared at him. Thor looked utterly confused and Bruce just had a look of mild interest as he watched the girl stand absolutely still throughout the whole scene.

When everyone had calmed down Fury spoke, "Yes, you are to play babysitter but take heed, she is more dangerous than she looks. We also need to see if you can get her to talk." The Avengers looked at the girl in shock.

"So she hasn't said a word to you?" Tony questioned. "Also, why do you even have a teenager on the helicarrier?"

Fury said nothing while everyone waited for his answer. Finally, after much consideration he replied, "That's classified Stark, now I want all of you to go and watch her. Stay at Stark's tower. She will be your top priority for now on. I will decide when this assignment is over and you will take this seriously. Clear?" Fury said in a tone that left no room for argument.

He got half-hearted mumbles from everyone except Thor who seemed to yell with agreement in his natural loud voice.

"Does she have a name or is it classified?" Bruce asked as the other Avengers got up and exited the room.

Fury waited until Clint walked out letting the door shut behind him to answer, "No we have nothing on her what-so-ever. Not a whisper, nothing."

Bruce stared, shocked, "Nothing?"

"No nothing. now get out." Fury replied frustrated at his lack of knowledge.

Bruce left without a word quietly shutting the door behind him.

Fury gave a sigh and turned toward a computer. Nothing, this girl; it was like she didn't exist until they found her INSIDE the helicarrier. He didn't even know how she had gotten on in the first place. No footage or witnesses, nothing, nada, zip. It scared him more than he liked to admit. That's why he reinitiated the Avengers. His instinct told him to be very careful around this girl. He turned his focus back to the computer as he tried in vain to located even a rumor about the mysterious person.

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The Avengers entered the Quinn Jet and got ready for takeoff. The girl, quickly and quietly, got seated in a far corner staring off into space. Bruce entered last and quickly told the others about his conversation with Fury.

"I don't believe him." Tony mumbled already hacking into Fury's system.

"Wow. I never would have thought..." Clint trailed off his thoughts as they took off.

The rest of the flight was awkwardly quiet as the Avengers couldn't think of anything else to converse over.

The Quinn Jet landed silently on the roof of the rebuilt Avengers Tower and everyone climbed out waiting for Tony to tell them where to go.

"Okay let's see. Fourth floor down is the training and equipment room. Thor and Steve share the third floor down. Two floors down is Natasha and Clint. One floor down is me and Bruce's lab/room. This floor is a kitchen and living room. Finally the girl is going to have to share a floor with two of you because I didn't expect another person. Any questions?"

"Do you have enough food?" Natasha asked.

"NO!" Bruce answered immediately. "We need to go to the store. Anyone want to go food shopping?"

"We can all go later, Bruce. I'm going to go relax first." Clint said, "Two floors down, right?"

"Yeah. I think I'll go check out the room with you Clint." Natasha added.

"May I go and tell Ms. Foster of these events?" Thor boomed.

"Yeah we can all meet back here in an hour and a half." Steve suggested.

"Good idea. I'm going to watch T.V. then." Tony said as everyone except Thor entered the building.

**A/N: I'm BACK! What's up? Here's this chapter and I'm sorry about the wait and the fact I can't guarantee anything better than this. Oh, well. Summer was full of swim practice and my job so nothing really got done. Now I have a tough AP class so it probably won't go much better. Apologizes and cookies to anyone who put up with me. **Constructive criticism welcome while flames will be used for marshmallow roasting. R&R if you feel like it. **Later!**


	2. Ariel

Ariel and an Encounter with the Paparazzi

Disclaimer: FANfiction. Come on now guys say it with me. FAN-fiction.

"Jarvis to prepare the rooms for everyone." Tony asked once they were in the tower.

"Right away, sir." the AI answered.

Tony, Steve, and Bruce gathered in the giant living room Tony had created.

"So, what should we call her?" Tony tentatively asked the others.

"Are you suggesting we name her?" Steve asked slightly horrified at the idea.

"Really Tony? I mean it's not like she's a pet." Bruce said.

"Well it's also not like we can call her Her of the rest of the stay."

"Uh, yeah, but..." Steve said unsure.

Bruce thought for a quick moment and replied, "Steve I think Tony might be right. Even SHEILD couldn't find a name for her."

"Ha!"

"Shut up, Tony."

"Well I guess, but how do we know she'll acknowledge the name?" Steve asked Bruce while Tony pouted at begins told to shut up.

"I don't know, but it's worth a shot." Bruce replied. "We'll have to wait for everyone else though..."

"I know let's watch a TV!" Tony said happily, "Javis what's on?"

Shrugging Bruce and Steve agreed to watch whatever Tony decide to put on because they had nothing better to do. As they settled down they wondered what to do with the girl that had stood quietly right outside the elevator without so much as twice in the whole time they had been here. Tony told her to find a seat and after a second of hesitation she sat as if waiting to be told what to do next.

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The other Avengers slowly trickled into the room. Natasha was first in to come down (up?), followed by Clint. A few minutes later Thor burst through the door wondering about when they would go get food.

Once Thor knew they would go get food soon, Steve quickly informed everyone that their new guest needed a name which seemed to stump everyone. As they thought the TV blared in the background as Tony channel surfed.

The Avengers studied the girl that was watching the TV as Tony flipped from channel to channel. She her eyes, focused completely on the T.V., were a usual dark brown color, but were blank and lifeless. Her hair was light brown and cut so short; it didn't fall into her eyes or impair her vision. A worn, dirty black hoodie and jeans covered her frame and hid the rest of her body. They guessed she was about 5'4-ish. They would have to get do a physical later.

"Any ideas?" Bruce asked everyone.

He received negative answers from everyone except Tony, who was still browsing TV channels. Nothing seemed to fit, a few times someone would shout something simple like Sarah or Megan but it would quickly be rejected by one of the others.

"I've got it!" Tony shouted as he jumped from his seat and pointed towards the TV.

Upon the TV screen Disney Channel was declaring a movie marathon; the theme was the old Disney princesses.

"Ariel, that's good right?" Tony asked quickly.

Everyone stared for a second as they thought about it and slowly came to the agreement that Ariel was the best thing they could come up with. Steve and Thor, however, agreed but still looked confused.

"Why Ariel?" Steve asked.

"Yes, indeed, Stark. Why name this lady Ariel, out of all the other names?"

"Well, there's this mermaid who can't speak because of a witch. You guys will just have to watch the movie to get it." Tony said, "Jarvis, pull up The Little Mermaid for Thor and Steve to watch later. Now that that's settled let's go out to eat."

"That's nice Tony but first we need groceries. Even if we went out to eat where could we go?" Natasha inquired.

"Shawarma. Let's go to that shawarma place again. I liked it." Tony said getting a vacant look on his face, lost in thought.

Everyone agreed (to various degrees) and they all set out, intending to get shawarma and then do grocery shopping. Their plans, however, were stalled as they walked out the front door of the building into a giant crowed of paparazzi cameras flashing and clicking blinding the Avengers. Why were the Avengers walking in the first place you ask? Because it was always faster walking in New York as opposed to driving.

'NOOOOO!' all the Avengers screamed in their own heads. Occupied with the Avenges no one saw the teenage girl stealthily sneaking past the cameras losing herself in the crowd of people yelling, taking photos, and writing furiously on their notepads. After a few minutes of fighting through the paparazzi Natasha, irritated beyond belief brought two guns out from nowhere.

"Alright everyone. GET BACK!" she yelled calmly.

Terrified the mob of cameras slowly receded leaving enough room for the Avengers to pass through unhindered.

Heaving a sigh Bruce said, "Thanks Natasha. That was horrible."

"Where's Ariel?" Thor bellowed.

"I haven't seen her since..." Steve cut himself off as Clint caught sight of Ariel at the rear of the group behind Tony.

"Huh, she seems totally untroubled by the fact we were just mobbed by journalists." Natasha said.

"Whatever, come on you guys, I'm starving. Let's go get some food!" Tony said marching forward.

Agreements from everyone sprang up as the hurried to the restaurant.

**A/N: Well tonight I'm just getting a ton done. Although I suppose it helps that I did plan out most of the story this time. It also helps that I had a base for this chapter already written. Whooo! Anyways I think I'll post this one too because if I have it done I'm going to post it. Flames are never welcome but constructive criticism is. Do you know the difference? Later! Thanks for dealing with my sporadic updates. **


	3. Disaster in California

**Disaster in California**

**Disclaimer: Own not I do. Ha-ha. I feel like Yoda. Anyways.**

-Ariel POV-

I walked into the shawarma restaurant as the Avengers walked over to the table. Before I could sit down Tony's phone started ringing.

"Hello? Seriously! Alright. Do we bring- but. Okay." I watched him snap his phone shut as everyone else finished ordering. "Alright, can you make that to go, please?" Tony asked the waitress kindly, "We have some unexpected business to take care of."

"That should be fine." the waitress said professionally, jotting the note down. "How much time do you have?"

"Not long, can you put our order first please." Tony said giving her a flashy smile.

"S-s-sure. " the waitress flushed and swiftly left the team to themselves forgetting about my order.

I lowered myself into a chair between Steve and Bruce.

"Oh, Ariel, did you order?" Steve asked politely.

I shook my head no and he asked, "Did you want anything?" Again, my response was the same.

"Okay you guys," Tony started. "We get to go to a bomb site."

"What? Why? What happened?" Clint said as the rest of the team looked at Tony in shock.

I sat there uninterested as Tony explained that someone had planted a bomb in a city in California. Half of the city was already abandoned and being renewed but the other half was densely populated with civilians.

"Why are we needed there?" Natasha asked getting over her initial shock, "It's not like they need us."

"Well Fury decided we needed to be there and he wouldn't tell me why he wanted us there so badly."

"So because Fury wants us there we drop everything and rush over to help?" Bruce tried to clarified.

"Exactly." Tony said.

"We let us go, my friends. The food is ready so we can depart now." Thor declared as he saw the waitress walking up with the food and check.

Murmurs of agreement were heard and we quickly left the small restaurant Tony had become so fond of.

"Put it on my tab." Tony said walking out.

I was last on the Quinn jet and watched as Tony, Natasha, and Steve abruptly end a hushed conversation. The, relatively, short ride was completely silent as we flew towards California. The other passengers kept glancing in my direction or trying their best to avoid looking at me at all. It really didn't bother me too much as I stared blankly at a spot on the wall thinking over what I would, eventually, have to do.

My mission was to infiltrate the Avengers and find any and all information that could be used against them. No one knew anything about me. There was nothing on where I was from or who I was. Personally I didn't know who I was or where I came from. Not that it mattered to me. Anyways this was just another mission and then I could get on with my life.

Everyone was being given unique jobs to do. Tony got to go play, er, I mean, examine what was left of the bomb, while Bruce was to go help the doctors. Clint and Natasha were supposed to go and see if any evidence could be found out about the attacks. Finally Steve and Thor were off to go move big pieces of debris and help if anyone was trapped. I slipped away as Fury was telling Steve and Thor where to go to start helping.

'Tony was right, no one actually needs to be here.' I thought to myself as I wandered over to the abandoned part of the city. The sounds of the injured and hurt slowly faded into the distance as I walked father away. The part of the city I was in was totally devastated and I had to dodge the mess of rubble and metal disfiguring the streets. I don't know why I wandered around the demolished city; it was practically a tradition though. Whenever I could I would wander a blast zone; especially if I had even planted the bomb there myself. I can easily say I did not wander the debris filled streets because I felt sad, filled with remorse, or guilty. I walked the streets because I could. The pain filled cries of the victims filled my ears but I walked on ignoring them, like always. I neither helped nor did I hinder the efforts of the rescue workers. I was a specter, a ghost just there to observe.

Suddenly I sensed a presence and whipped around ready to knock out a young looking man behind me. He didn't look injured, but his clothes were raggedy. They were not filthy or majorly torn but they looked like he had worn them quite a lot. He had shaggy, dirty blond hair that stopped just short of piercing blue eyes. He was just a few inches taller than I was making him about 5'6 or 5'7. He clothes were too baggy to make out much else about him. If he cleaned up most people would have considered him handsome. I, however, am not most people so I continued on my way ignoring him.

"Whoa, hey! Don't just leave." He exclaimed.

I kept waking. He was no one. Just some random person who would quickly get the hint and leave me. Or so I thought.

"Alright, fine. I can walk and talk. So, how's life?" He questioned following behind me.

I didn't respond; he kept talking, "My name's Peter. Care to tell me yours? It's fine, you know, that you don't want to tell me your name. I'd ask you more questions but I don't think you'd answer me."

Peter followed me through the concrete maze and kept taking. He talked about everything, from the weather to the tragedy that happened earlier today. I have to admit it was nice to have someone who didn't mind my silence. Not that I couldn't talk, my voice was perfectly fine, I just wanted to talk because I never had anything to say. I mulled over actually answering him when a crunch reverberated all around us. A large piece of concrete from a building a few blocks away from us crashed down creating a loud noise. As I followed the movement of the falling block with my eyes I felt something change in the man standing next to me. He quickly started talking again in the exact same way as before. His uncaring, light, happy tone but I could hear underneath it now. The second he dropped his defense I understood the man. He spoke with a voice that was filled with sadness, expertly hidden behind false happiness, childish ramblings, and stupid jokes.

"Ha. I guess I'm not so good at hiding my feelings huh." He asked as I paused for a second andd turned to him, trying to figure him out, what he was hiding. "Oh, well." With a sigh, he started talking again, "I can see it in you too, you know. There's an empty look in your eyes. Hidden so perfectly I bet you don't even notice it yourself."

I thought about that, was I really not happy? That thought had never occurred to me before. I learned to ignore emotions a long, long time ago. Could this man in front of me see things behind a mask that fooled even me, how was that possible?

"I'd know that sadness anywhere because I know it personally. There are people all over that are more like puppets on a string or people going through the movements." He continued.

That struck something in me. I followed the orders of my superiors and did what they told me. I was trained to do that. Trained to follow orders and serve. To do as HE tells me. I don't remember half of what I've done in my life and something tells me I don't want to know. I..., there was something, a voice in my head, that told me I needed to remember something. No someONE. Now I was utterly confused. Who was this man who knew me better than I knew myself? Was I happy or sad? Do I follow my head or my heart? Why did this man confuse me so? I never doubted myself before.

"It's okay. To live once in a while, to think about things that make you sad. I work at a church, that's why I'm here. The people here though? They don't need me. They'll be just fine. Come here. Sit." He motioned to part of a fallen building that formed something akin to a bench. Intrigued by this man I sat down at the opposite end of the makeshift bench.

"The people here all have someone else. Someone to help them get through this. Someone to comfort them, to make sure they're alright. It makes me happy, but I figured I wasn't needed here. Then I noticed you walking away from the injured, ruined city. I felt the need to tell you a story, is that okay?"

I nodded yes. This man who knew so much about pain, about me too. How was it that he could go on so happy and content amazed me. However, I would not understand why he was so happy until much later. Life is funny that way, hindsight is always so much better than foresight.

**A/N: I got a case of insomnia tonight which is why all this writing is being done. Thanks to anyone who read, followed, added to your favorites, or reviewed. Constructive criticism is welcome, please point out any mistakes I made and I'll get that fixed. Flames will be fed to my pet dragon. Also I am bumping this up to T cause I'm paranoid and for future content (I think).**


	4. Don't You Worry Child

**Don't You Worry Child (song by Swedish House Mafia)**

**Disclaimer: Avengers doesn't belong to me. I mean really, why would it? Although, I do technically own Ariel and Peter. **

**On a side note before I start the chapter: Ariel is usually thinking in most of the paragraphs. **

~~~~~~~Ariel POV~~~~~~~

"It was a long time ago but I can still remember everything clearly." Peter started. "I had everything. Maybe not a lot of money, but I was happy. It was the happiest time of my life. It was all because of my girlfriend. She was great; her name was Sarah. She was wonderful. I-everything was going my way. I had friends, family, good grades." Peter's voice held a lot of regret.

I noticed he was speaking in past tense. Curious, I wanted to know what happened next. What went wrong?

"It was a sunny day, ironically. Warm, a nice breeze, it was a great day. We went on a picnic, Sarah and I. We went to a lake that was located close to town and ate lunch. It was perfect. I was going to propose to her..." Peter got a far off look in his eyes thinking back on the day.

I had thought I knew what happened next but Peter surprised me when he continued.

"She said yes. We were so happy." Peter continued with dry eyes, "That night there was..., we were just walking back into town. Walking, it was more efficient and we both liked the walk. There was an accident. A drunk driver swerved off his or her side of the road when we were almost back late that night. We had hung out around town for the rest of the afternoon and evening. It happened... we weren't even on the street. The driver ended up on the sidewalk." Peter seemed to be talking more to himself by now.

I listened quietly as we got up and continued walking though the deserted streets. All around us there were sounds from unstable buildings. I did a quick survey of the area and noticed we were walking back towards the populated part of the city.

"Sarah was killed instantly. That's what the doctors said at least. I don't remember anything after the bright, whiteness of the headlights and the crunch of metal against bone." Peter explained, "Everyone said it was a miracle I was alive, but for me it was a curse. I was practically untouched while my fiancé was killed. I lived life mechanically and without purpose for a long time. I never looked back and did whatever anyone told me. It could have been a joke, dangerous, or ever completely idiotic. I always lived and I always found myself back at that hill. Time passed in a blur and I know most of my life went downhill after that. I pushed my friends away and didn't speak for a long time. One day a new church was built by that lake. I remember because it was built right over the picnic spot."

As Peter explained, I could feel something in the back of my mind trying to surface. A memory of someone maybe. It always stayed just out of reach like when a word is stuck on the tip of your tongue but you still don't remember what it was.

"I entered the church with a broken heart and nothing to lose. Actually, now that I think about it, I was lead inside by a priest. He changed everything and I still don't know how." Peter recollected, "He was a nice elderly man. He was kind, gentle, and, most importantly, he didn't give up on me. I think I knew him for about a year before I even started talking to him. Before then, he would just sit and talk to me. He would talk about his day or ask questions he knew would go unanswered. Unlike my friends he never tried to get the 'old me' back. That's all everyone else wanted. They wanted the man, the child really, to come back. The only problem was he died in the accident. They were all pushing for me to return. Pushed me to try to be the person that fell in love with Sarah; someone who I could, no would, never again be. I found things that used to interest me to be boring or I would hate it. It's interesting how a mind can cope with life and death."

That struck a chord somewhere inside my brain. Unfortunately, like lightning it was gone in a flash. Just for a moment though I remembered something. Red hands and a still body. Then it was gone leaving me with a headache.

Peter continued unaware of my mental state, "It was nice, I could be a whole new person. I was free of expectations, of haunting memories. I could be someone new. Eventually that's what I became. A new man. I dropped out of school, left home and decided to start over at the ministry where the priest was. I spent a few months there and I was happy. It was good to be able to help after being so useless. I visited periodically with my family but I decided to stay away from the town and the people that brought the numbness back. It wasn't pain that I ended up running from; it was that numb feeling. You know what it feels like. I can see it in your eyes. When you don't feel anything no matter what it is you're told to do. Blindly following orders."

It was funny. He described everything that I was feeling when I couldn't even put it into words. I was surprised, to say the least. This man who had been through something so completely different from me could understand my every thought. I wanted to ask him a question, if only "How?" because I knew he would understand. The word, unfortunately, stuck in my throat. I knew Peter could tell by my body language what it was that I wanted to voice but I was disappointed that I couldn't find a way to speak that one word.

"My father, the priest, he told me this the first time I showed up at the grounds for his church: 'Don't you worry child. See, heaven's got a plan for you.' I didn't understand him then but I think I'm starting to. Serious heartbreak, among many other things, changes you. Breaks something that refuses to be fixes. I can tell you're broken; no you're spirit has been broken. That you're wandering through life with nothing but fragments of memories. I need you to try something. Try to find something to love, something to live for. It doesn't have to be a person, it can be a thing, a place, or an idea. You need to try to live. If only once in your life." Peter pleaded.

I didn't know how to react. What was he saying? I could only recognize half of the ideas he proposed to me. Get attached to something? A voice in my head kept shouting not to; that it would end badly. What was going on. My head spun and my vision blurred something that didn't happen to me.

As I was lost in thought my feet stopped moving. Stationary and oblivious a ominous crack sounded from overhead. I remember Peter looking backwards alarmed and shouting something. On instinct I tensed, not realizing the treat came from above as opposed to in front of me. I saw him running. Everything slowed down. A shove. My hand flew out to grab the collar of his shirt. Grazing the fabric I caught a thin wire. Flying backwards something snapped and all of a sudden I was surrounded by darkness.

Dazed I opened my eyes. In front of me was a giant pile of rubble. 'NO!' a small part of my mind screamed. The larger half of my mind went blank. I laid there looking dumbly at the scene before me, no actually taking any information in.

I blinked. 'What am I doing here?' I thought. 'How did I even get here?' I dusted myself off and rose to my feet. A jingling from my hand made me look down. A thin chain with a petit ring daggling from it glinted back at me in the afternoon sun. "What's this?" I wondered out loud. The chain was broken but the ring had been tied into it so it hadn't fallen off. I brought it up to my face and examined it. It was a simple silver band that had a diamond placed in the center with an inscription on the inside. Unable to read the inscription I turned the ring around in my fingers. A pang of sadness and a dim memory was all I could recall. A man with sad eyes and a lonely walk down a long road.

I scoffed and shook off the feelings; nevertheless I put the ring in my pocket. Maybe someone else could read the inscription on it. dusted myself off and left the cluttered street and the broken chain for the darkness of a closed alleyway. It was time to get back to the Avengers, after all I had a mission to finish.

~~~~~~~~ (3rd person POV)~~~~~~~~~

Natasha walked around trying to follow the two people around the broken city. She stayed out of hearing range and usually also out of sight. She could neither listen to nor see the two people she was tailing. That was fine with her though. Natasha just wanted to investigate this new person that Fury had her babysitting. Natasha was not a very trustful person by nature and they really didn't need her to handle crowd control. She was curious as to what Ariel had been doing sneaking away from 'prying eyes' (as Natasha liked to put it). As the building started to fall Natasha rushed towards the two civilians. Natasha saw the final act of the unknown man and saw Ariel seemingly shrug off the fact someone had just died to save her life. 'What's wrong with that girl?' Natasha wondered.

Upon realizing Ariel was going back to the Quinn jet, Natasha decided to go confront Tony. Although you would never hear her admit it, Natasha thought Tony wasn't a bad person to have on their side. Yes he had his flaws but he was definitely doing better.

"Stark!" Natasha said, finding the right tent. 'The scientists had certainly put up their tents/labs fast enough.'

"Yo, what's up?" Tony replied.

"I need to talk with you. In private." Natasha explained.

"Okay. You guys, take five or whatever." Tony said to the few technicians in his tent, "Yes, Miss Romanoff?"

"I need you to tell whatever intel you have on Ariel." She replied curtly.

"Ah, and what makes you so sure I have any information?" Tony asked.

Natasha gave Tony a withering look.

"Okay, okay. Well, there isn't much. Like a suspicious nothing. All I could find was physical information and anything they discovered on the helicarrier." Tony explained, "Why?"

Natasha related to Tony the events from earlier and asked, "So there's absolutely nothing on her at all?"

"Yeah, she didn't exist until we found her." Tony said, pondering his newfound information.

**A/N: I am so not getting any sleep tonight and this chapter is super long. Whatever, this writing thing is fun. Hope you all understand this won't happen often. The only reason I got all these chapters out was because they were mostly written. Thanks to anyone who's read, reviewed, followed, favorited(?), or anything else I forgot. Oh and yes, Peter died. Just wanted to clarify. It's kinda like Jet in **_**Avatar the Last Airbender**_** when you don't actually see him die. Later, **


	5. Hero

**Hero (by Skillet)**

**"A hero's not afraid to give his life, a hero will save me just in time."**

**Disclaimer: It's all MINE! In my head only of course. I wish I could like recreate reality so it could be though. **

"Whoa, Cap., what happened?!" Clint asked, shocked.

"This? Oh, it's nothing." Steve said as he walked onto the Quinn Jet.

"Right..." Clint said disbelievingly, "Come on Cap. spill. What really happened back there?"

"Well, um, Thor?" Steve asked hoping the asguardian was a better story teller than him.

"It was a marvelous battle, " Thor started, "we went to 'hot spot' as Fury put it, though I found it was actually quite cold..."

~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~

"You two are to go to the hot spot aka the center of the city. Everyone has been evacuated but our sensors pick up quite a few live bombs that are still live. Your job is to see if you can find them." Fury explained.

"No offense, sir, but wouldn't Tony be best for that sort of job. He would be able to find and disable them in no time flat." Steve inquired.

"Yes, he would be best but we need him to track down the tech. and find whoever is responsible for this whole mess. Besides you two are only to help the bomb squad move rubble hindering their search. It should only take a few minutes and then you and Thor can help move rubble trapping survivors. You two are physically the strongest right now so that's why you two are stuck with the 'heavy lifting' instead of something else." Fury explained.

"Alright then! Let us be off then." Thor exclaimed. Steve assumed Thor understood about half of what Fury just explained but that was okay because Thor had the right intentions and could figure it out.

The two Avengers set off and journeyed through the city helping out anyone they found along the way. After about ten minutes, it took them quite a bit longer than Fury guesses because they kept stopping to help; they approached a group of uniformed people.

"Hey! Do you need any help?" Steve asked.

A few men just stared through their masks at the legendary heroes but most just continued working.

One man can up to them and asked if they could move a giant piece of building that was on top of one of the armed bombs.

"Why don't you just keep it trapped there?" Thor asked.

"Because if it goes off there's a reasonable possibility that the rubble could go flying and land a good distance away on top of an unsuspecting person." the man explained.

Quickly and efficiently the group worked to unearth and disarm bombs that were left all around the square. After a good five minutes the officers declared that they were done.

"Well, good work guys. I think that's it. We need to keep an eye out thought because there could be a couple more." he said.

"What now, Captain? Shall we go back and find more people to help?" Thor boomed.

"That's not a bad idea. Sir? We're headed out if you don't need us anymore." Steve alerted the officers.

"That's fin-" the commander in charge was cut off as a loud crack resounded in the distance.

Pieces of rubble began to topple from the shockwaves and then everything turned into a blur for the Captain. People raced away from the tallest building as it started to collapse. Steve saw a brief glimpse of Thor flying towards the building intending to hold it up. He looked down and started racing against the crowd. A flash of metal had caught his eye before he saw a hand disappear into a pile of rubble. He raced as fast as he could and saw another man in front of him running towards the same spot.

Thor saw the tower fall and acted instinctively. He was determined to hold the building up until everyone got clear. He had done things harder and more taxing than this before, so it shouldn't have been a problem. Unfortunately for Thor, the building was structurally unsound and it collapsed into thousands of small pieces as soon as too much pressure was put on a single spot. Thor raced around smashing the bigger pieces as they started falling but he couldn't catch them all. As the last person cleared out Thor flew above the wreckage and floated surveying the area. There! He thought as he saw Steve and the two men. The first man had just reached the second one before a look of horror crossed his face, visible to even Thor flying in the air. The second man quickly pulled the first man from the rubble and dragged him into a parking garage about a foot away from them that offered protection from the falling building. Confused Thor looked around and spotted something, a little flashing light near the garage. Struggling to remember if that was good or bad, Thor saw Captain America arrive and ask if the men were okay. One man pointed to his leg, while the other one explained.

Steve took a glance at the leg and determined the man wouldn't be walking anytime soon. Then he heard the beeping. Thor was speeding towards them, having remembered that the flashing light meant something was about to explode. Dodging rubble Steve and Thor arrived at the same time.

"Oh, thank God." the second man shouted. I didn't know where else to go with the falling building but..." he trailed off, "You saw it right?"

Both heroes nodded. "Thor can you carry all three of us?" Steve asked horridly.

"Yes but it will not be fast enough." Thor thought as the beeping got quicker.

"Then take these two." Steve said, already helping the man with the bad leg to stand.

"What...? No." The second man insisted, "I'm staying here. You go with the Captain."

Steve stared, "What do you mean. Stop arguing and hurry." Thor picked the first man up and waited patiently as possible for the two men to finish.

"No. The world needs you more than me sir. You're a hero and you can't die here." The second man said turning around and bolting deeper into the garage.

"Thor, get out of here." Steve ordered as the beeping rose in pitch and got faster.

Unable to wait any longer Thor didn't argue and flew out; his only condolence was that the Captain had his shield with him.

Steve rushed after the idiot who had run farther in. About ten steps later the bomb went off and he was knocked down by the blast. Blindly Steve raised his shield, praying the other man had gotten far enough away.

Darkness, inky and unsettling darkness, was all Steve could see. He couldn't hear, or feel anything. He grunted and vainly attempted to push the concrete off of himself. All the while, all Steve could think of was the man who wanted to save him, Captain America, even if it meant giving up his own life. Was this what it was like being a hero? Steve thought to himself. People sacrifice everything so you can get a chance to save the world. They depend on the Avengers, on me and my team. Steve realized. They need a hero even in this new world, this new age. Maybe things haven't changed as much as I first thought. Having given up just moments ago Steve felt a new wave of determination as he heaved himself up trying to dislodge at least some of the ceiling off of him. They need me, he thought, they need me and I won't let them down. With a third and final shove Steve felt the concrete shift. Soon after, Steve could feel someone above him, lifting rubble off of him.

Sunlight burst through cracks in the darkness. Steve rose lifting the rest of the rubble off by himself. Ready to thank Thor, Steve was completely surprised to come face to face with the man who had run off. Bleeding but with a satisfied look on his face he slumped down.

Steve blinked and asked the first question that came to mind, "What's your name?"

The man took a deep breath and Steve was shocked to see a puddle of blood forming on the ground, "Max. Name's Max."

Steve rushed over intending to stop the bleeding, "Thank you Max. You saved my life."

Max grunted and pushed Steve away, "No I didn't, and quit it. I'm in SHIELD remember, I can do it myself."

Steve lifted his hands in surrender and continued talking, "But you did save me. I would've been trapped under there anyways, even if you hadn't run off."

"Ha. Thanks but I don't see it that way." Max winced as he put pressure on the wound. "You think they'll get here in time?"

"What do you mean? Max, MAX! Don't fall asleep on me now soldier." Steve said desperately as he watched Max start to pass out.

"I'm awake!" Max jolted but he was slowly losing consciousness again.

"HELP!" Steve shouted as he looked around. The outside of the parking garage had stayed up but the floors inside had collapses making the garage seem like one giant room. "HELP!" Steve continued calling moving towards Max intending to help whether the help was wanted or not.

Thor had flown the man with the injured leg as fast as he could. They had just gotten out of range when the bomb went off. Thor hurriedly found a small group of men and rushed to give them the first man. Thor stayed just long enough to drop the man off as he raced back towards the center of the city. He found Captain America leaning over to help the second officer crying out for help. Thor flew in and landed.

"Captain." he said looking at the injured man, "should I take him first?"

"Yes. Thor get him help as quickly as possible." Steve said relived Thor had made it before the man had passed out.

Thor made a trip all the way back to the base camp by the Quinn Jet in record time. He dropped off the man and stayed to make sure he was got a doctor immediately before returning to pick up the Captain. Steve was given a quick look over but had only suffered minor injuries thanks to his shield. Thor had gone back a fourth time to look for it. Captain had found Max lying in a cot with lots of bandages wrapped around his front.

"He'll be fine, sir. He just needs sleep and time." the doctor had told him.

Steve heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you, doctor."

"No problem. You know it's an honor for all the men who worked beside you." the doctor replied walking away.

It's funny, Steve thought, You don't even have to be a hero to do something incredible. Max saved me, the doctors saved him; no one even needs superpowers to do what they did.

Steve was cleared for the day but he still spent the rest of the day helping where he could, fetching doctors or supplies to deliver to the injured.

~~~~End Flashback~~~~~

"Geez, Cap., sounds like you had a fun day." Tony added when the story was finished.

Thor had stared out telling it but Steve ended up finishing it because Thor had a tendency to exaggerate. Sitting in the Quinn Jet as everyone started talking to each other, Steve might have figured out just why the people with him were there. Not because they had special abilities, and certainly not because they got along on a personal level, but because they were all good people, even Natasha and Clint, both of who claimed that they were unemotional and professional. Even that new girl, Steve had a feeling she would be one of the best of them. Even if he had no idea who she was; call it instinct.

**A/N: Wow this was way longer then I had planned. Also I will do a bit more of this, where Ariel barely has any presence in the chapter. Please, please, please, point out any mistakes you see. I found a bunch and I'm going to fix them, but it's hard to edit your own work. Do it constructively and no flames or I will find Aang and have him fire-bend you. You guys should really look up the songs. they inspire the chapter. Also the cover image isn't mine. Thanks for reading, or anything else (i.e. favorite-ing, following, or reviewing). Later. **


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